Tachograph charts cost tipper firm £900
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Failing to produce tachograph charts has cost John Walsh & Sons, trading as Manchester Tip pers, 1900 in fines and costs. The company admitted the offence when it appeared before the Middleton, North Manchester magistrates.
Prosecuting for the Vehicle Inspectorate, John Heaton said the hours and tachograph regulations were designed to prevent the dangers arising from tired drivers being behind the wheel of HCVs and to create fair commercial conditions. When a traffic examiner asked the company to produce tacho charts for a two-month period it became clear that a number of charts for a number of drivers were missing, Heaton told the court. lf charts were not retained for analysis the operator and the enforcement authorities could have no idea what the driver had been doing.
For the company, Alden Carr said the vehicles were used for site clearance, mainly within Greater Manchester. The average distances driven were low and there was no question of tired or fatigued drivers on this opera
tion. The company had its tachograph charts analysed by an outside agency and systems were in place to flag up any infringements.
The driver mainly involved had only been with the company a short time, said Carr. He had been disciplined promptly, given warning letters and finally dismissed—it was hard to see what more could have been done. This was not a case of trying to get round the purposes of the regulations and the company was morally blameless.
The magistrates fined the company £500 with £400 costs.